As frequent readers already know, I make a living by writing content for my sites, but when I started this blog, I decided I would explore other ways to make money and build passive income through writing. After all, one of the keys to lasting success is to keep learning!

Squidoo is one way writers are earning money online. You can create pages (they call them “lenses”) on any subject you want, and then insert affiliate links and advertising to turn them into passive sources of income. Essentially, it works the same way building a blog does, but you get to take advantage of the fact that Squidoo is already a big, popular authority site that’s well liked by the search engines. It doesn’t take as long to start getting traffic as it does with a brand new website.

Of course, for providing this free platform for you, Squidoo is going to take its cut, but the company and its lensmasters donate thousands of dollars annually to various charities, so there’s no evil empire aspect about it.

Some money-making methods I’m content to simply learn a bit about, but others I’m excited to try first hand, and Squidoo definitely falls into that second category for me. Alas, I’m a newbie over there, so I decided to find someone with more experience to give you the real scoop.

With less than 100 lenses (at the time of this interview anyway), “Janet21″ is already making hundreds a month from the program. She was kind enough to answer some questions and explain how exactly she makes money with Squidoo:

Janet, I’ve read your “Are You a Stay at Home Mom (or Dad)…” lens, so I know a bit about your story, but for my readers would you mind sharing what brought you to Squidoo and making money online

My site is all about empowering writers to increase their wealth using their words–is Squidoo a good opportunity for those who enjoy writing

Most definitely! Squidoo enables lensmasters to write about topics they enjoy or share information they are passionate about and they can earn money in the process.

How exactly do you earn money from Squidoo

There are four ways to earn money on Squidoo:

1. Ad revenue (Google and Glam ads). This revenue is shared with lensmasters based on the performance of their lenses.

2. Affiliate sales from Squidoo money making modules. (Amazon, eBay, Cafepress, etc.)

3. Inserting your own affiliate links through Commission Junction, Shareasale, Linkshare, etc.

4. Squidoo helps you drive traffic to your own personal websites and this can increase your sales and earn you money as well.

Do you have to put a lot of work into promoting your lenses or does a lot of the traffic come naturally through search engines

Honestly, I do not spend a lot of time promoting my lenses. After I create a lens, I submit it to a few Squidoo groups and directories. I occasionally digg a lens if I feel it is a hot topic. And, that is about it.

I’m guessing that for all the people creating lenses on Squidoo, only a few are making decent money. Do you have any suggestions for those who want to be successful

Always write about topics that interest you and create a group of lenses around each topic/niche you decide to cover. The more specific and focused your lens is, the better chance it has of becoming successful. That is very important.

Also, be sure to include some money making modules within each of your lenses to promote products that relate to the topic you are discussing.

Lastly, but most importantly, get involved in the community. Squidoo is a social networking site afterall and lensmasters that are the most active in the community tend to achieve the best results.